Rarely has an NFL players’ name shot into the social zeitgeist quicker than Cooper DeJean‘s.
Big-time football fans – and all Philadelphia Eagles fans – will know how impressive his rookie season has been, replacing Avonte Maddox as the team’s primary nickel corner mid-way through the season. But now even casual fans have been singing the Iowa alum’s name in the days post-Super Bowl victory.
The outlandishly fast CB, who ran a 4.42 40 yard dash at the combine last February, became one of the stars of Super Bowl LIX when he picked off Kansas City Chiefs quarterback, Patrick Mahomes in the 2nd quarter – the first interception of his professional career – and returned it for a touchdown.
Since then, DeJean has become somewhat of an online – and no doubt real life – celebrity. And just when DeJean thought it couldn’t get any better, there is yet another cherry on top.
Cooper DeJean Is PFF’s #1 Corner Of The Season
Pro Football Focus, in a recent tweet, declared that Cooper DeJean is their highest rated corner of this past season, per their X account.
PFF’s highest graded CB this season:
COOPER DEJEAN ð pic.twitter.com/pFPAUyfd5H
â PFF (@PFF) February 11, 2025
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
This isn’t necessarily an out-of-nowhere surprise, as DeJean was the outfit’s #3 graded CB coming into the Big Game.
However, this is certainly a testament to how well the second round rookie has played this year, obtaining a better overall grade than even this season’s Defensive Player of the Year, Patrick Surtain II.
Quinyon Mitchell And Cooper DeJean Form The League’s Best Young Cornerback Tandem
General manager, Howie Roseman’s good work drafting does not end there, with first round pick, Quinyon Mitchell, ranking as the #8 CB in the NFL this past season.
Prior to the Super Bowl, PFF had some effusive praise for the pair of shining rookie stars.
“Mitchell ranks eighth among cornerbacks in PFF overall grade (78.4), while DeJeanâs 82.0 mark is tied for third. Among 60 qualifying rookie cornerbacks over the past six seasons, their PFF overall grades rank third and seventh, respectively. Their play heavily contributed to the Eagles having arguably the best defense in the NFL, a unit that allowed a league-best -0.12 expected points added per play.
The 22nd overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, Mitchell almost exclusively plays on the outside on the right side of the defense. He did not allow a touchdown in coverage until Week 16, despite starting the entire season, and has let up just two scores all year. Mitchell has also allowed just a 67.4 passer rating, ranking sixth lowest among 97 qualifying cornerbacks this season…
Unlike Mitchell, DeJean needed time to break into the lineup. He played only eight snaps over Philadelphiaâs first four weeks. That quickly became a thing of the past. He rarely left the field after the Eaglesâ bye week and finished the season with 832 snaps on defense, 735 of which came in the slot. DeJean is now one of the NFL’s best all-around slot defenders as a rookie.”
Now one of the “best all-around slot defenders” in the NFL, it seems like the Eagles’ secondary could well be set for the next three years – and perhaps the best part of a decade. Congratulations have certainly been earned.
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